I taught online English classes for refugees housed in a former army barracks on the south coast. The experience came with its challenges – unreliable internet connections, a fluctuating group of students each week, and a wide range of language levels. Despite this, the classes soon found their rhythm. Sessions focused on conversation practice, everyday life in the UK, and fluency-building tasks that incorporated vocabulary and grammar. The approach was very student-led; we tailored each class to the interests and needs of whoever joined that week. The learners were (and continue to be) a genuine pleasure to teach – motivated, resilient, and full of curiosity.
The experience gave me a much deeper, more personal understanding of the refugee perspective – one that is often lost in the noise of media coverage, which can be overly simplistic or negative. Speaking directly with people affected helped me appreciate the human side of displacement: the courage it takes to leave everything behind and the uncertainty they face. It’s humbling to realize how easily any of us could find ourselves in similar circumstances under different conditions. This perspective has stayed with me and shaped how I engage with wider social issues.
I continue to teach these online classes on a weekly basis in my own time, and I intend to keep doing so. It may only be one hour a week, which feels like a drop in the ocean in the scheme of things, but I’ve come to hope that even small, consistent efforts can make a meaningful difference.
“The learners were (and continue to be) a genuine pleasure to teach – motivated, resilient, and full of curiosity.”
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